AMERICANISM 


An Address by 

COLONEL EDWARD ORTON. JR. 


□ □ 
□ 



Presented before the 

NATIONAL BRICK MANUFACTURERS’ ASSOCIATION 
COLUMBUS. OHIO. FEBRUARY 18. 1920 







S ^u^C(* [)('<oknowvi 

























AMERICANISM. 



An Address Presented Before the National Brick Manufac¬ 
turers’ Association at Columbus, Ohio, 

February 18, 1920. 


By Colonel Edward Orton, Jr. 

A mericanism is a complex word, it is not ca¬ 
pable of any simple and easily framed definition. It 
has two entirely separate aspects. It may he thought 
of as a code of principles or platform, partly written and part¬ 
ly unwritten, which has grown up in the country during three 
hundred years, and which in the lapse of time has become 
fairly definite and generally accepted, or it may be thought of 
as the feeling of reverence and love for that code and the 
moral standards and strength of character which gave it birth 
and have maintained its life. The first of these aspects is like 
our human body, material. The second is like our soul, spirit¬ 
ual. All great words like soul, and love and home and country 
are after all undefinable, and take on full meaning only when 
emotion comes to the aid of dull reason. 

Neither aspect of Americanism can be minimized or ig¬ 
nored, if we wish to maintain alight the sacred fire of our 
patriotism. Without the constant action of our calm intellect¬ 
ual faculties, to examine and re-examine each new phase and 
tendency of our national life, we should soon find our enthu¬ 
siasms and emotions fixed upon untenable grounds. And, simi¬ 
larly, without that quickening of the spirit, and that hot and 
tumultuous surge of emotion, which rushes over us at the 
signal of our country’s need, the verbal expression of the code 
of principles would soon be as meaningless to us as the old 
clay tablets of the Assyrians. 

It is natural and gratifying to our self love as a people, to 
assume that Americanism, that combination of reasoned re¬ 
spect for our institutions and love for the spiritual background 
which gave them birth, is a national attribute, a universal 




— 4 — 


possession of the people of the land. Would that we could 
justify such a claim! It is exactly the same with patriotism 
as with religion. Few dispute its obligation. Nearly all admit 
in some degree its binding force. But, weak humanity only 
attains a portion of its ideals. In patriotism, as in Godliness, 
the vast mass of the people are only indifferently perfect. A 
small minority constitute the extremes of civic virtue and 
destructive vice. 

A great awakening of patriotic enthusiasm swept the land 
as we entered the war. It arose slowly, for we were still and 
still remain a politically immature people, with but little 
international consciousness, or appreciation of the obligations 
of world citizenship. Millions of good people in this land had 
almost no conception of the moral causes of the war, and still 
less conception of any reasons why we should be embroiled 
in it. But, as the days passed, and discussion made the situa¬ 
tion gradually more generally understood, the fervor of patriot¬ 
ism burned steadily brighter and brighter, until the voice 
of the people echoed from shore to shore, demanding to be 
led against the arch-enemy of civilization. With the end of 
the war, and the return of the soldiers and sailors to their 
homes; with the formation of the American Legion, with its 
sturdy doctrine of one hundred per cent. Americanism; with 
frequent and convincing proof of the prevalence of a well or¬ 
ganized propaganda for creating social unrest, revolution and 
anarchy in our land, this patriotic zeal has if anything grown 
stronger. 

It is still too early to tell whether this enthusiasm and 
fervor for Americanism is going to expend itself in talk, or 
whether the deeper currents of our life have been sufficiently 
stirred to insure some more permanent result. It has pro¬ 
duced one useful result at least: It has caused a frequent 
effort to define what we mean by Americanism, and to set 
forth a platform, or declaration of principles, to which all 
American citizens should be willing to agree. No one effort 
to write such a code or platform can possibly cover the 
ground: if each one of us wrote one, each would be different. 
But, after all, there are some big outstanding principles to the 
inclusion of which there would be general agreement. To the 
writer, the following seem vital. Not one could be left out, 
without danger to our distinctive type of civilization. Doubt¬ 
less others might well be added, yet if the spirit of those now 
set forth are obeyed, there would be little left to desire. These 
principles are: 


— 5 - 


(1) Government by law. 

This means not only submission of the individual 
to the law, however distasteful or ill advised it 
may seem to him, but also his support to make 
law enforcement effective, and insure the main¬ 
tenance of order at all times. 

(2) The Law shall be the will of the majority. 

Anything other than majority rule is not democ¬ 
racy or republicanism. It is autocracy. 

(3) The right of the minority to express itself shall be 
fully safeguarded. 

The minority of one day may be the majority of 
the next. The minority must have its opportunity 
to convert the majority to its view. This involves 
the right of free speech, which is further set forth 
and modified in paragraph five. 

(4) Strict adherence to the constitutional method of mak¬ 
ing all changes in the form of government. 

Our Constitution itself provides a fair and rational 
way for the cure of all governmental ills. There 
is no necessity ever to resort to force, if the above 
principles are followed. All that is necessary to 
make a change, is that a majority shall desire it. 
If a minority, failing to convert the majority to its 
view, then resorts to force, it thereby becomes a 
rebel and an outlaw. 

(5) The liberty of the individual in all things, so far as 
compatible with the general weal. The criterion of 
this compatibility shall be the law. 

This clause distinguishes between liberty and li¬ 
cense. Most of our troubles in this country come 
from inability to distinguish between them. The 
anarchist invokes the right of free speech, but we 
limit that right when it is used to advocate over¬ 
throw of our institutions by force. The polyga¬ 
mist invokes freedom of conscience, but we limit 
that, when it advocates social immorality. The 
criminal advocates freedom of action, but we limit 
it when it extends to murder or theft. The toper 
or drug-addict invokes personal freedom, but we 
limit that freedom when it is used to consume 
poisonous drugs which deprive people of their 
reason or their health, and make them either a 
public menace or a public charge. 




- 6 — 


(6) The obligation of the citizen to be honest. 

The honesty of the citizen is his intimately per¬ 
sonal affair, and lies between him and his eternal 
salvation. But, it also lies between him and his 
duty to the state. A dishonest society can never 
be a durable society. The training of our citizens 
in this foundation of all public morality and civic 
virtue is a national as Wiell as a family concern. 

(7) The obligation of the citizen to work. 

Nature is as beneficent to the worker as she is 
merciless to the drone. No state composed of idle 
or lazy people can thrive. 

(8) The obligation of the citizen to thrift. 

Those who fling away their money or resources of 
any kind are a menace to the state. Personal lib¬ 
erty does not extend to the right to waste or ruin 
either private wealth or natural resources. To 
waste either is immoral and immorality rots gov¬ 
ernment. 

(9) The obligation of the citizen to serve his country. 

The privileges of citizenship are only those of 
membership in a big co-operative organization for 
mutual benefit. No corporation owes anything to 
its members, lexcept as they do their part towards 
earning it. The state owes no man a living, but 
every man owes the state for the opportunity to 
exist in peace, and to earn his living in a protected 
community. The state has the right to demand 
from every man, first, military service, to protect 
with his body the perpetuity of the community; 
second, financial support, or the payment of his 
share of the common expense; and thirdly, intel¬ 
lectual service or the labor of making the laws, 
voting, and helping to carry on the machinery of 
government. 

(10) The obligation of the citizen to be inte'ligent. 

No republic can live, unenlightened. Men, to be 
able to distinguish between right and wrong, and 
to choose wisely in the problems of citizenship, 
must be intelligent. Otherwise, the intelligent 
minority will rule the unintelligent majority, as 
they have from the dawn of history. Stamp out 
illiteracy. 


- 11 — 


virtues of the same society. It has the problem of alien labor, 
living herded in masses. It has the problem of the negro, and 
the illiterate white. It has the problem of class antagonism, 
and the strife of labor and capital. It has its crowded cen¬ 
ters, where conditions are strained, and its small quiet com¬ 
munities where life is still patriarchal. 

But to one and all, the problem is the same. It is to bring 
home to the people their duty to consecrate their lives to the 
practice of the principles of Americanism, and that higher law, 
given by the Master, on the shores of the Sea of Gallilee, 
nineteen hundreds years ago— '‘Do ye unto all men even as ye 
would have them do unto you.” 


NATIONAL BRICK MANUFACTURERS’ 
ASSOCIATION 


Office of the Secretary. 

Indianapolis, Indiana. 

At the final session of the Thirty-fourth Annual Convention 
the Committee on Resolutions presented the following, with 
recommendations for adoption: 

On motion, this resolution was unanimously adopted. 

THEODORE A. RANDALL, 

Secretary. 


RESOLUTION ENDORSING MILITARY TRAINING. 

"Whereas, The United States has been obliged in every import¬ 
ant war in which this nation has thus far engaged, to resort to 
universal military service by the draft in order to obtain the nec¬ 
essary forces for effective defense; and 

Whereas, The reluctance to require universal military service 
by the draft has always resulted in prolonging our wars, delaying 
our success and increasing the cost in life and money to a point far 
greater than should have been; and 

Whereas, Since young men must serve in time of war, they and 
their families are entitled to demand that they be given such train¬ 
ing as will reduce their danger and avoid needless sacxafice of life; 
and 

Whereas, Good citizenship implies recognition of the obligation 
of the citizen to do his share of the public work of the country, 
including military service and American youth cannot be expected 
to lealize the vital nature of this obligation unless it is brought to 
them in a more positive manner than by precept and compulsory 
military training does more than any other possible method bring 
home to them this fundamental requirement of good citizenship; 
and 

Whereas, Universal military training will make for better citi¬ 
zenship, because it will democratize the people by mingling youths 
of every social stratum, class and interest in one common duty; 
and 

Whereas, Universal military training will make for better citi¬ 
zenship because it will necessarily educate and develop the illiter¬ 
ate group of the people partly by direct study of the English lan¬ 
guage but chiefly by awakening the pride and ambition of the 
backward, and creating in them a desire to overcome their defi¬ 
ciency; and 




-13— 


Whereas, The mobilization of our army in the last war showed 
a degree of physical unfitness, degeneration and disease among 
the ten million men examined, which cannot be otherwise than ap¬ 
palling to all thoughtful persons and the experience of this mobili¬ 
zation also proves that a large part of this unfitness and disease 
is curable or preventable under the conditions of compulsory mili¬ 
tary training, and that no other means has yet been found to deal 
with this public menace; and 

Whereas, To a peace-loving people who covet no other nation’s 
goods or lands, and who only seek the opportunity for peaceful 
growth and commerce, a large professional army is expensive, for¬ 
eign to our social ideals, and unnecessary if the youth of the coun¬ 
try are given a short military training; and 

Whereas, The creation of a citizen army, trained so far only as 
will make their rapid mobilization and complete training possible 
in time of need, is the fairest, simplest and most democratic meth¬ 
od of distributing the burden of national defense and is the best 
insurance for the preservation of peace and the upbuilding of our 
political ideals and the improvement of the physique of our rising 
generation; and 

Whereas, The military plant equipment and personnel for con¬ 
ducting the training of the youth of the country have been obtained 
at untold expense during the Woidd War and are now on hand and 
available, and will now be sacrificed at a negligible fraction of their 
cost unless retained for use in a universal military training plan; 
and 

,Whereas, The Constitution of the United States has from the 
first contained a universal military service requirement for the exe¬ 
cution of which the Congress has never provided the proper means 
of executing, and it is now possible for the first time in our his¬ 
tory as a nation, to adopt a rational military policy and to provide 
without undue expense for its execution; therefore, be it now 

Resolved, By the National Brick Manufacturers’ Association of 
the United States, in annual convention assembled, that they are 
in favor of the enactment at this time of a reasonable universal 
military service law, along the general lines of the army reorgani¬ 
zation bill (Senate Bill 3792) now pending: 

That they urge upon the members of the Congress, their united 
efforts to pass this much needed legislation for the betterment of 
our people and the pi-esei’vation and upbuilding of a better citizen¬ 
ship, and 

That they call upon all brick manufacturers and others con¬ 
nected with this Association, to work for this legislation in their 
respective communities and to cause, through proper individual and 
collective action by citizens the favorable consideration of this plan 
by their representatives in Congress 




* ■ ’^ A 

* V W^.-'AV. '■* 

* • • - ■* _■ _ 






r^ 


S' --"3 


. V . 


r»- •* 


- r 

T ■ 


4 K 


- < 57 J 553 ^^; ’ f* 

•’•■:' ■ ■. %■ *v- 

v ^ 'S^ 


W' • 


rx >' ' t ^ . 

- : ^<f ^ ‘ 

V’ 


.r< 


*» V- 




»4 


^ -2 


F>i " iKT 


! .f^<V 


4 •'^ 


. F -*1 

•■ p. 

y •-" M 


* ',- '-^ y 

-■ 


• « 


X’n 


f -1 


* ^ 




:#*-s' 
k • * * 


rwi 






4 I. 


■ -V- 

■'V^-?^-v ^ 


3i. 


" V. 

Jh« 9 t 9 

.A ^ 


■ "n ■ 


>. 




A 




.vrw-^f ,..>. .-^'V : 




r . 




’ ‘ • 


" V>. •% V >•''• ' ^ y .* ^;. 

iJji’ ■ '■ ^='.^ ‘ 




• r\ 

^ •>. 


C * 





. *■ « * 


♦ > 


- . •i< ‘ . ./; 

^■ 4 «‘ ' 

■:, * •’-^ ** ■ 

,.. V> 44 ', . ■ ■ 

" 3 . 


? • \ /.■> 5 • ■■♦-v - -"’t; 

V'! ^k?isi^^’'-'>*l’ ■' ■■ '*‘'* '■ ’-^'^-'* 4 aH ' 

V*V‘V»‘^-'^s.^iS.- .1 " , '‘V.’- - •‘'^ / - ■ ‘‘V ^ 


■• V 


Sto'^ ■ ,-vJii 


V *..1 'i-V,'. ' „V 

t 4 *'** --'V •■ ■ .'a‘■*-■ ■> .■ -' <aim 

?‘:mB 

v-i 

•'^ 4 






WhP^ ''"'v' >:J 

V''->r. • ■ >- f^v^ ‘'^SP 







:mS9^.' 


•> 


ITf 

f-*. ■• F^’—.,' , ;j<iiJ 

/,-••_ * Y _:> r . r 

•■’.1 ■ ■ 

■ 

^ S- 4.# 4 •• 


<l’ 

"x 

V A 

r_ j 

. < ; 

l‘*^ 

I- ^ 

' i<4; 

r* 

i 

:- i 



" V 





/•'4 


T - ■ 4 P- - . r T ■ ■» 


':•-<■ ‘-'ANi 

, -j^ :“■ f-'' 


<'• w 





?xV. •> -- >•. 




\ 








‘ ■» 


■■'■ 'x '■■■“■ ^- "T! 

* - X ■ ” iv'-^- 

- -■ ■‘3^' -'"'- 

x-* • - 


^ • 2 r * y^i >*' 

'■■^ ■ ■ 
it. - ^-. 


4» 


4" 


I ^ V - ^ 

a ^ ^4 1- 









• r , 



■t • ^ - 

^ . -• ■-0 : •':' i 

*• !.-• * 4' * >■ - . ' "' « *■' ■-* \ *. *, '• 

X' 1^. ■■■'**j -’ 'A.'.-^-'J^. \ . ‘V 


^•vi* ^ 


* i 




is- - ■ VC-. ‘ 

♦ ^ ^ • «•• * ^. ♦ t ’ - • ■ ■ ^ Jt 

’ ,•• ■' '■ -■ -. '■’ ■'■^> 
m 4 :' 


I -^T> • 










(S*- '• - • *>,■ ♦• .' ’ . . - y»^ ' ^ M •^’ ^ .... ”' - 


'i* f- •’ 


^ ,» 




’^.'•41 






.w 







V'ni,. * . 




>4. 


*- '•'-f 4 


^■S.P ' 




?K-( 


;.-V 


i'-. V ■ _ • 

- ■ 

» WT-'*- “* 


A 






-- ^ ::.••■-is 

" ^ It -V .■•:’'.-V* ': 

-, -''A A 


■ % *' - ‘ '■ ,. 

» ^ - 

Y* '> ^ 

^'V'^ A, 

. vA"^- 5 p- 

4 r-«/ 

•' • • 


■'ll 


- •v'^ 


-hVv 








.# 


IV /t . 1 


"‘iV, 

- v^ 


,•< . 





- -j w * ‘'. J 5 ^- • '■ 1 

- rl*-|- A -V ^ *' ■ ^ ' 5 ‘ 


■ -* •• ,. • ': 

« • “• ■- *- »“.*' 

. ^*’3 t/wv^ 

^ ■* 5 S^ 

-A’-*- '?■ '■ 






'i*_.-.^., y, 


I-. 


i 








AVa 




‘^‘a’ 


s.,. ■ ■ .^^??-!;r- ■ -'■• . 4^4 VAy - .r^ • . .; •■ 

BBtit '- '"I **" - •- 

isS^. ■»S^ - ak - ^ • 




•4 -Nl 


• • • 





• 4 j 




/•%* ^'V* 




• ^ W'p — - ^^jk' ^ -- *” 

■ >■ .' ;.. "-■ r *s ■ - r 

n*-# - J 2 r'—A.- : f'* 

;-A-v'^ , . xfcaiS^ A 

-'." Av'-AA - •• A'' ’AA 


m *J‘ 

% i 



• ^.tj--:^i.. . ■ -■ ■ ' ""■ • ."1J 

- ■'^ • .r- <.- Vit‘ - ' ii^ 

■ .-A ' ■ ' ’ -«' ■ 

A* ' • ^J ^ 

. ■* . •^* -. - -V *• ^ 

> 

•V * • 


• ~t • 


r 

•• «• ' ■ 






^ 1 




V' 


j " ‘A.aJA ,-’■--y 

«''■-■■- f:>-i 


\. . ■ ^ 

^bSl ' feV-r ‘T* ^ V>i: 

fc. ^j u . , .- ... ^^.V 

V“,-j •'!.-■•' ’ . • , -* fc. . fn^. irWJ^ifii* ■ 


•» 






: '%i^ 




* (ii^ 


♦, 

^ .* » 





« . 













The Clay-Worker Print 
Indianapolis 




